Tina's October Movies

Hurricane Sandy had a devastating effect on the East Coast in October, with a path of destruction and lack of power. That means less movie watching and publishing my monthly list a bit late.  I hope you all survived the storm and are safe and well. As usual, numbering picks up from previous months and movies are graded on a scale of 1-5 cans of tuna, with 5 being the top. Movies I had not seen previously are marked with an *.

103.  Norma Rae (1979) – It’s a long way from Sister Bertrille in “The Flying Nun” to Norma Rae for Sally Field in this gritty movie about a young widow who works in a textile mill down South.  Field’s title character lives with her parents and her two kids, barely making a living in the sweltering, dusty plant, along with most of the rest of the town.  When Ruben (Ron Liebman) shows up – a union organizer from New York City and truly a stranger in a strange land – and tries to convince the locals that they are being exploited and need the union to protect them, Norma Rae becomes his staunchest supporter.  The scene where she is forced out of the factory but defies management by simply standing on a table holding up a “UNION” sign remains a powerful visual and a turning point for the story.  Field won her first Oscar for her spot-on portrayal of a fearless woman ready to tackle the unknown.  Beau Bridges, as her mostly quiet husband, joins her in another memorable scene where she vows to cook, clean, iron and make love – all at once.  Of course, you have to buy in to the generalization that big companies exist to exploit their workers and never have their interests at heart, but this movie is very good at conveying that specific scenario, at least in this town.  4 cans.

104.  Steel Magnolias* (2012) – Speaking of Sally Field, the star of the original version of this movie, here is a new version aired by Lifetime TV and starring an all black cast, headed by Queen Latifah in the role played by Field.  Queen brings her alpha woman strength and attitude to the role of MaLynn, the mother of Shelby (Condola Rashad), a young woman about to get married and living with diabetes.  The strength of the story comes from the bonds of the Southern women (Jill Scott, Phyllicia Rashad and Alfre Woodard) who congregate at Truvie’s Beauty shop to complain about their husbands and lives and offer friendship and comfort to each other in good times and bad.  The script has been updated to include references to Michelle Obama and Beyonce, but the story is largely the same.  Maybe because the original was so memorable that I can recall the zingers delivered by Dolly Parton (“There ain’t no such thing as natural beauty”) Olympia Dukakis and Shirley Maclaine (and a young Julia Roberts as Field’s daughter), this time around I knew what was coming and it didn’t have the same impact.  Latifah has a harder edge and lacks the vulnerability Field brought to the role.  Still, I find the strength and friendship of women appealing and commendable, so it’s hard to knock any story which features that bond as its main theme.  3 cans.

105.  Argo* (2012) – When 52 Americans were taken hostage in the American Embassy in Iran in 1979, six people managed to avoid captivity, seeking refuge in the residence of the Canadian Ambassador.  While the world focused on the hostages and their 444 days of captivity, the CIA considered ways to safely remove the missing six, who would soon be discovered missing by the Iranians.  CIA operative Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck, who also directed), proposed the best of the bad ideas – to pose as Canadians scouting locations in the Middle East to make a science fiction movie titled “Argo.”  But to make the fake movie seem real, he needed Hollywood help (from John Goodman and Alan Arkin, both wryly amusing) – including a script, storyboards and a fake production company – as well as passports and bios for each of the six.  He finds a script for a potentially terrible movie (shades of “The Producers”) and puts the plan into action.  Would the Iranians buy the concept of scouting locations amid the upheaval?  Affleck shows a deft hand in directing this clever movie, based on the actual events, making it both suspenseful and comedic in turn.  4 cans.

106.  Abduction: The Carlina White Story*(2012) – Ordinarily I won’t subject myself to Lifetime’s overly dramatic dramas, but this one was based on a true story, so it intrigued me.  Besides, I like the actresses – Keke Palmer and Sherri Shepherd (in a serious role) – who played the leads.  Carlina was just a few days old when she went to the hospital with a fever.  There a woman who had just lost her third baby and was posing as a nurse befriended her parents and, when they left temporarily, abducted her and raised her as her own.  No amount of pictures on milk cartons and pressure on the police could find the missing child.  The new mother managed to raise her without much of a job but with help from her sister.  However, when teenaged Carlina needed a birth certificate, she learned that she was not who she thought she was.  Still a bit overly dramatic, the movie nonetheless brings up the subject of parenting, of identity and who really are we.  Not that I would recommend this movie, but the performances were good.  2½ cans.

107.  Rain Man (1988) – The Best Picture of 1988, Rain Main is perhaps Tom Cruise’s finest performance.  I tend to find him very self-conscious as an actor, or maybe it’s just me seeing his Tom Cruiseness in every role.  Here he is the brash Charlie Babbitt, a failing luxury car dealer with a lot on his plate when his estranged father dies.  Not only does he not inherit the  rich man’s fortune, he learns he has a brother Raymond (Dustin Hoffman) who has been institutionalized for years.  Hoffman’s performance as a savant, which won him the Oscar, is amazing.  His every movement and utterance is completely in character of the man whose life is dictated by strict routine.  He has to watch Judge Wapner every day, buy his underwear at Kmart and eat fish sticks and lime Jell-O on Wednesdays.  As Charlie drags him across country in order to wrest his inheritance away, they develop a bond, with Charlie accommodating Raymond’s strange demands and awkward responses while developing a brotherly love.  This is an original story, and it deserves all the accolades it received.  4½ cans.

108.  Doubt (2010) – There is no doubt that Meryl Streep is the premiere actress of her generation.  Here she is Sister Aloysius, an unyielding nun who serves as principal of a Boston school in the 1950s.  Nearly engulfed by her habit, Streep has only her face and voice with which to convey her character, a stereotypical scary nun fiercely wedded to intimidation and tradition in the education a rowdy group of kids in a Catholic school.  She frowns upon the new parish priest, Father Flynn (the brilliant Philip Seymour Hoffman), a man who dares to use a ballpoint pen instead of a fountain pen and is friendly with the students.  Too friendly, Sister Aloysius suspects, after a young nun (Amy Adams) notes some strange behavior by the only black student in the school after visiting with Father Flynn.  Was the priest merely trying to reach out to help the young man or was there something untoward in his action?  There is a memorable scene between Streep and the boy’s mother, played by Oscar-nominated Viola Davis.  But the crux of the story is doubt itself, doubt about the priest’s credibility, doubt about whether suspicion and intolerance are enough to convict someone of acting inappropriately without being a witness to such action.  This provocative movie was one of the best of the year, and seeing it again left no doubt why.  4 cans.

109.  My Fair Lady (1964) – I have to love this movie since it is all about using proper English, grammar and enunciation.  Professor Henry Higgins (Rex Harrison) sets out to prove he can convert an uneducated Cockney guttersnipe into a woman with class and charm – often despite her protestations.  Audrey Hepburn plays Eliza Doolittle, the object of his intentions in this erudite Lerner & Lowe musical.  The lyrics tell the story brilliantly in this musical adaptation of the classic Pygmalion tale.  I could have danced all night.  4½ cans.

110.  Love, Actually (2003) – Love actually can be quite challenging, especially for those who don’t love their mates, or who love someone else, or who don’t have a partner at all, or who lust after someone without their knowledge or encouragement.  A plethora of British actors (Emma Thompson, Hugh Grant, Colin Firth, Alan Rickman, Keira Knightley, Liam Neeson, Bill Nighy, among others) appear in this ensemble, playing witty, charming, lonely and desperate people (sometimes all at the same time), sometimes looking for love in all the wrong places, and looking for it all around Christmas. This was one of the first holiday movie ensembles that I can remember, where the characters are divided up into duos or trios and only occasionally intersect in each other’s stories.  This movie pulls off the trick neatly, with the characters finally reaching happiness after a series of trials.  It also happens to have one of my favorite holiday songs, “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” by Kelly Clarkson (and yes, I am Jewish, but I still like the song).  The whole thing made me want to run to an airport and greet strangers.  3½  cans.

111.  Ethel* (2012) – When I think of someone named Ethel, either Mertz or Kennedy comes to mind.  This loving tribute to Ethel Kennedy by her youngest child, Rory (born six months after the assassination of her father, Robert, in 1964), reveals much about her background, faith and fun-loving side.  Ethel Skakel was born into a wealthy family similar to the Kennedys, competitive and outdoorsy.  Rory and Ethel cover the Ethel’s courtship, her parenting style and the role of the children in JFK’s 1960 presidential campaign as well as their participation in RFK’s ill-fated run in 1964.  Ethel is strong and stoic in the face of the loss of her parents in an airplane crash, the loss of two of her 11 children and, of course, the assassination of both her brother-in-law and her husband.  Since Ethel raised her brood largely on her own, she should get the lion’s share of the credit for the continuing tradition of Kennedys serving in non-profit and community service capacities.  Informative, if not revealing, this documentary takes Ethel out of the background and sheds light on her life and her family.  3 cans.

112.  All the President’s Men (1976) – And speaking of presidential politics, this account of Watergate by Washington Post reporters Woodward and Bernstein reads like a procedural drama.  As they peel back the layers of the onion that was the break-in to the Democratic National Committee’s headquarters at the Watergate, they heed informant Deep Throat’s advice to “follow the money,” tracking the trail of dirty tricks in Richard Nixon’s 1972 campaign all the way into the White House.  The mark of a good movie based on a true story is whether it can sustain the suspense even though we all know the outcome, and this one does just that.  There are nice touches on the look of the Post’s newsroom, the process for confirming information and dealing with “non-denial denials” and seeing now antiquated typewriters, phones that dial and using phone books for reference.  This entire episode changed our culture and the lives of so many people involved.  Kudos to Robert Redford, Dustin Hoffman and Jason Robards as editor Ben Bradlee for their performances in this compelling drama.  4½ cans.

113.  John Portman: Life of Building* (2012) – The late 20^th century and current work of noted architect John Portman is profiled in this PBS documentary.  Master of modern architecture, Portman first gained acclaim for breaking the mold of boxy hotels with his innovative Hyatt Hotel in Atlanta.  Soaring atriums, flowing shapes and open spaces characterize his design aesthetic.  Portman became a developer, sculptor, painter and international businessman whose work is well represented throughout China and in 60 cities globally.  With the use of time lapse photography, this documentary helps the viewer experience their splendor in daylight, sunset and nighttime.  This movie presents stunning design and beautiful visuals for those interested in modern architecture.  3½ cans.